Hawaii grocer Okimoto Corp. celebrated 75 years in business in 2024, built on a foundation of honesty, integrity, humility and unity. Led by the third generation – Kris, Kyle and Kit Okimoto – the company operates two stores on Oahu and one on Molokai. Kit Okimoto, who in addition to his CFO duties in the […]
Category: Industry News
Yesway Hires Hampton As Chief Technology Officer
Robert Hampton has joined convenience store chain Yesway as chief technology officer. Reporting to Tom Trkla, chairman, CEO and president, Hampton will lead Yesway’s information technology strategy and oversee all aspects of enterprise technology, digital transformation, cybersecurity and innovation. With more than 20 years of executive technology leadership experience in the retail, convenience and supply […]
Hormel Foods Appoints Borrelli As EVP Of Retail
Hormel Foods Corp. has named Domenic Borrelli EVP of retail, effective Feb. 23. In this role, Borrelli will oversee the retail business unit, which includes many of the company’s most recognized consumer brands and represents one of its largest growth engines. “[Borrelli] has a proven track record of creating consumer-driven growth in well-established, legacy businesses […]
Afresh Appoints Litle Chief Revenue Officer To Scale AI Platform
Afresh has appointed Adam Litle chief revenue officer following the company’s largest year to date, with more than 70 percent year-over-year growth and usage across more than 12,000 grocery departments in North America. Litle joins a leadership team with deep experience operating enterprise software companies through periods of rapid growth. In the past year, San […]
Fresh Del Monte Named Winning Bidder To Acquire Del Monte Foods Assets
Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE: FDP) has been named the successful bidder to acquire select assets of California-based Del Monte Foods Corporation II Inc. for a purchase price of $285 million, plus assumption of certain liabilities, through a court-supervised sale under Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The transaction remains subject to court […]
Key Food Partners With Swiftly To Modernize Digital Shopper Experience
Key Food Stores Co-Operative, a chain of more than 460 family-owned and -operated supermarkets across eight Northeast states, has partnered with Swiftly to transform its digital ecosystem and tap new retail media revenue streams. Through the collaboration, Key Food will leverage Swiftly’s App & Web platform with integrated Alcohol Cashback solutions to enhance shopper engagement. […]
Walmart Shares Executive Leadership Changes
Walmart Inc. (Nasdaq: WMT) has announced several executive leadership changes designed to fuel innovation and drive the new era of retail, with all appointments effective Feb. 1. The board of directors has elected new leaders to its executive council, and incoming President and CEO John Furner shared additional organizational changes. “Over my 32 years with […]
Mission Produce To Acquire Calavo Growers In $430M Deal
Mission Produce Inc. (NASDAQ: AVO) and Calavo Growers, Inc. (NASDAQ: CVGW) have entered into a definitive agreement under which Mission will acquire Calavo in a cash-and-stock transaction. The transaction would give Mission entrée into the high-growth prepared food segment, complementing its avocado business with Calavo’s value-added, avocado-based prepared foods. In addition to a variety of ready-to-eat […]
2 Grocers Garner Top Employer Certification For Workplace Excellence
Lidl US and Ahold Delhaize USA have earned Top Employer certification for 2026, making them the only U.S.-based grocery retailers recognized by the Amsterdam-based Top Employers Institute for workplace excellence this year. The certifications acknowledge both companies’ human resources practices and organizational culture. The Top Employers Institute evaluates companies based on participation and results from […]
Swiftly’s Audience Optimizer Offers Retailers Digital Tools For Success
The Shelby Report recently visited with Swiftly, a Seattle-based retail technology platform, to learn more about its new Audience Optimizer, a tool designed to help brick-and-mortar retailers transition their marketing efforts from traditional print circulars to targeted digital campaigns. Sean Turner, co-founder and chief technology officer of Swiftly, said the platform provides retailers with digital […]
The Coca-Cola Co. Reshapes Leadership Ahead Of CEO Transition
The Coca-Cola Co. announced a series of leadership changes to accelerate digital transformation and strengthen regional focus, with all appointments effective March 31. The Atlanta-based beverage company established a new chief digital officer position and reorganized market leadership in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. Sedef Salingan Sahin, currently president of Coca-Cola’s Eurasia and Middle […]
The Fresh Market To Open 7 New Stores
The Fresh Market has unveiled an investment plan of about $600 million for 2026, with seven new stores planned. The announcement came during Cencosud’s Cenco Day 2026 event, held for the first time in Buenos Aires, where Cencosud shared its outlook for the year ahead. For 2026, the company expects consolidated revenues of $18.4 billion […]
KeHE Adds Former Comcast President Steven A. White To Board
KeHE Distributors has appointed Steven A. White to its board of directors, effective Feb. 1. White brings extensive consumer packaged goods and distribution experience from leadership roles at PepsiCo and Colgate-Palmolive. He most recently served as president and special counsel to the CEO at Comcast, where he supported enterprise leadership development, digital equity initiatives and […]
FMI Names Shawgo To Lead Digital Transformation Strategy
FMI – The Food Industry Association has appointed Jennifer Shawgo senior director, technology strategy and programs, a new role designed to accelerate responsible digital transformation across the food retail sector. Shawgo, who brings two decades of cross-sector experience spanning distribution, software startups and association leadership, will lead programs, partnerships and member engagement connecting technology and […]
Food Lion Plans 4 Store Openings Across The Carolinas
Food Lion will open four stores across North and South Carolina in the first quarter, extending the Ahold Delhaize banner’s footprint in its core Southeast market. The Salisbury, North Carolina-based grocer announced the expansion Jan. 15, with the first location opening six days later in Pontiac, South Carolina. The openings mark continued growth for the […]
Stater Bros. Expands Partnership With Afresh
Stater Bros. Markets is scaling its partnership with Afresh Technologies, extending AI-driven inventory management beyond produce into additional fresh departments while implementing distribution center (DC) forecasting. The expansion follows strong results from the 171-store California chain’s recent produce deployment, which it said reduced shrink and improved product availability. The combined system connects real store demand […]
Local Express Showcases Unified Commerce Platform
Local Express, an artificial intelligence-native unified commerce platform, highlighted its comprehensive technology solutions for grocery retailers during Grocery Shop in Las Vegas, emphasizing how the company has evolved from serving small-format stores to providing enterprise-level capabilities for retailers of all sizes. Maria Gallegos, chief marketing officer for Glendale, California-based Local Express, said the company is […]
Simbe Introduces Improved Tally 4.0 Shelf-Scanning Robot
Simbe has launched Tally 4.0, the fourth generation of its autonomous shelf-scanning robot, featuring up to 12 hours of runtime and enhanced computer vision capabilities powered by NVIDIA’s AI infrastructure. The San Francisco-based company announced the release Jan. 12, with units available to customers starting mid-2026. The new platform builds on a decade of deployments […]
Walmart Opens New Supercenter In Eastvale, CA
Walmart has opened its first supercenter in Eastvale, California, marking the retailer’s entry into one of the state’s fastest-growing communities. The 170,000-square-foot store at 14100 Limonite Ave. held a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 7:30 a.m. Jan. 14 before welcoming customers at 8 a.m. The store created about 300 jobs in the Inland Empire city, which has […]
Schnucks Begins Store Remodel In St. Charles, MO
Schnucks has begun renovating its Lindenwood store in St. Charles, Missouri, with completion expected by late summer. The remodel will update the 71,000-square-foot location with expanded departments and improved amenities. The project includes expanding the dairy, frozen foods and deli kitchen departments, along with adding a new floral section. The store will receive updated fixtures […]
